It’s been an interesting few days on TikTok’s Sri Lankan side; if you spend any amount of time on the app and you’re on Lankan TikTok, you have most likely come across an account that is claiming to be the official page for a reputed milk brand in Sri Lanka.
It is highly unlikely that a brand such as this which is a juggernaut in the F&B industry would be behind such an account, considering the content it has been churning out, but with the changing landscape of marketing and the successes of guerilla marketing, one can never be too sure.
The account has been absolutely hilarious and pretty successful in hitting the FYP with a running start and it has certainly captivated Sri Lankan TikTok. However, while the trolling is supreme we do have to wonder if this is some elaborate marketing ploy.
We’d like to draw a comparison to the American fast-food chain Wendy’s. Wendy’s social media team operates Twitter like a true two-way communication platform, prioritising customer interaction above all else. We’ve all read the Tweets, with the brand going after any and all their competing brands like McDonald’s and Burger King and being sure to interact with celebrities with large audiences.
Their somewhat loose and casual strategy has captivated audiences; Wendy’s Twitter has gotten a ton of attention and gained notoriety for their distinct brand voice.
Wendy’s voice and brand is unique to them, and marketers are noting that small businesses can learn from their overall strategy and apply those lessons to their own social media accounts. Regardless of whether you roast people or not, there are things to be learned from their epic social media game – distinctive brand personality, authenticity, long-term consistency, picking a strategy and sticking with it, and consistent engagement with customers, just to name a few.
So, with TikTok becoming one of the fastest-growing social media platforms in the world, and having taken our country by storm with many brands moving on to the platform to make their mark, we asked an expert on how well such a digital media marketing strategy (like Wendy’s or the Sri Lankan brand in question, if it is actually real) would be received in a country like ours.
IdeaHell and Derana Macroentertainment (Pvt.) Ltd. General Manager Janeeth Rodrigo, sharing his thoughts, noted that in the South Asian region, with its gossip mentality, this type of shock value content can go a long way and it can catch fire.
However, he said that from a brand perspective, personally, he doesn’t believe that it is the best strategy to start with, noting that the damage it does to the brand’s perception could be significant. He added that some may argue that this perception can be fixed once you have established the reach.
“When building a brand up, awareness is the first part of the funnel and once you’ve established that, you can start to position your brand, but I personally prefer a more consistent approach – one that is representative of the brand values right throughout,” he said, adding: “I can see how people could use it to get that traction and reach.”
